can States, and with the law of most of our own Colonies and dependencies. If by amending it we brought it into harmony with the German law, we should at the same time be making it diverge from American, Indian, and many of the Colonial laws.

Mr. Behrens' second objection is this: The bill as it stands reproduces several rules of English law of very doubtful expediency, and which are quite unnecessary for regulating ordinary commercial dealings with bills. The rules as to inchoate instruments, filling up blank acceptances, and accommodation bills may be taken as examples. It would be better to ignore such rules, than to reproduce them, and thereby give them recognition and sanction. To this objection I reply as follows: If these rules are not reproduced in the bill they still remain in the inconvenient form of case law. We cannot get rid of them by merely omitting them from the bill. Further, it is far better to draft the bill too fully in the first instance rather than too briefly. The omission of clauses is a very easy matter, which can be accomplished at any stage without in any way spoiling the lines of the bill. The insertion of fresh clauses is a much more difficult matter. More than half the difficulties of construction which arise on acts of parliament arise from the insertion in committee of heterogeneous new clauses. Again, in so far as these rules are objectionable, it is better specifically to call attention to them. Perhaps the select committee or whatever body deals with the bill, will see their way to amend them directly. If not, they can always be omitted at a later stage should that seem the preferable way of dealing with them. In drawing the bill, I have subdivided the sections as much as possible into independent subsections, so that amendments may be introduced easily and without throwing the rest of the measure out of gear. This plan is convenient, too, for the purposes of easy reference. I have dealt at some length with Mr. Behrens' criticisms, because I feel their weight, and I want you to see clearly the arguments pro and con. I hope I have stated both sides fairly, and have given you the materials for forming an impartial judgment, whatever may be the view you may take of the matters discussed.

Passing now from the consideration of the general scope of the bill, I wish to say a few words about its course of preparation. I think condensing case and customary law into the form of an act of parliament is about as difficult a task as one can well have, and I have been very glad to get all the assistance I could. I have had most valuable help from a good many sources, and am very grateful for it. Before the bill was introduced last year, a draft of it was printed, and several friends were kind enough to work at it. Mr. John Hollams and Mr. Billinghurst, one of your Council, were good enough to go through the draft and send me their notes, and most helpful I found them. Mr. M. W. Collet, one of the directors of the Bank of England, and who has had large experience of bills

both in England and America, was kind enough to go all through the bill with me. I then re-settled the draft, and the bill as you know was introduced by Sir John Lubbock, read a first and second time, and then massacred with the other innocents at the end of the session.

Since then the whole bill has been carefully revised by a committee of your Council. Criticisms and suggestions were invited from various sources. The several communications received were carefully examined with the bill, and the Committee in a series of evenings then went through the bill with me clause by clause. With each clause we read and discussed the collected criticisms upon it, and then settled how far any of the suggestions could be incorporated in the bill as statements of the existing law. Several subsections have in consequence been now added to the bill, and several subsections have also been re-drafted. Other suggestions, it was thought, ought to be submitted to the Institute as containing valuable materials for future amendments, should the Institute see fit to adopt them. I have further to thank Mr. Everard Hambro, one of the directors of the Bank of England, and Mr. Waterhouse, the secretary of the Country Bankers' Association, for some exceedingly valuable comments on the bill, which I have found of great service in finally revising it. A measure of this kind cannot have too many minds at work upon it. I hope the discussion this evening will throw some new light npon it. I will endeavour at the end of the discussion to answer any questions you or any of you may like to put in relation to the bill, and shall be much obliged for all the criticisms I can get.

I.

The following amendments are proposed to be made in the text of the Bill, in order to make it express more fully and exactly the existing law. It has been deemed undesirable to repeat the several clauses in the Bill which are here referred to. A specially prepared copy of the Bill was in October last placed in the hands of every Fellow and Associate, and copies can still be obtained from the Secretary.

Clause 4.

1. The definitions of "acceptance" and "indorsement" to be transferred from Clause 23 to the interpretation clause.

Clause 5.

2. Subsection (4) of Clause 5 to be redrafted, and to read "A bill is not invalid by reason only that it is not dated.'

Clause 18.

3. In Clause 18 the term "sans frais" to be added.

Clause 20.

4. Subsection (3) of Clause 20 to be qualified by adding the words, "in the absence of any different agreement.”

Clause 41.

5. A provision to be added to Clause 41 as to the responsibility of an agent to his principal who does not present a bill for acceptance with reasonable diligence; and the provision as to a bill drawn payable at the place of business of some person other than the drawee, to be struck out. Clause 46.

6. Subsection (4) of Clause 46 to be amended by providing that the drawer or indorser must "forthwith" express his dissent to the holder.

Clause 51.

7. Provisions to be added to the effect that the return of a dishonoured bill is in point of form a sufficient notice of dishonour, and that the miscarriage of a notice of dishonour in the post shall not invalidate it.

Clause 53.

8. Clause 53, Subsection (4), to be amended by confining its provisions to bills dishonoured by non-payment. Subsection (5) to further provide that a bill may be protested for better security where the credit of the acceptor has been publicly impeached; and Subsection (7) to be amended and run, "When a bill has been lost or destroyed, or the drawee or acceptor wrongfully retains it, protest may be made on a copy or written particulars thereof." Clauses 103, 104 to be transferred as subsections to this clause. Clause 55.

9. Subsection (5) of Clause 55 to be redrafted so as to make it clear that it is optional with the holder to take part payment.

Clause 71. 10. An express provision to be inserted that when a signature is intentionally cancelled any indorser who would have had a right of recourse against the party whose signature is cancelled is also discharged. A provision to be inserted. to the effect that a banker or other person who cancels a signature by mistake shall not be liable unless the holder suffers actual damage by the cancellation.

Clause 80.

11. Provision to be made for the case of two or more parts being negotiated to different holders; and an explanation to be added to Subsection (4) to the effect that nothing therein is to affect the rights of a person who in due course accepts or pays the part first presented to him.

Clause 83.

12. That in Clause 83 Subsection (2) be omitted. Clause 84.

13. That in Clause 84 Subsection (3) be omitted.

Clause 86.

14 In reproducing the provisions of the Crossed Cheques Act the original expression "not negotiable" to be reverted to.

Clause 90.

15. The words "either with or without the words not negotiable" to be inserted after "crossed cheque" in this clause.

Clause 99.

16. Provision to be made that a foreign note when dishonoured need not be protested.

Clause 104.

17. Provision to be made that in places where there is no notary, any substantial inhabitant, in the presence of two witnesses, may draw up a protest, a form for which is to be given in the Appendix.

II.

The following amendments in the substance of the law are proposed :

Clause 5.

1. That a bill must necessarily be dated, and that an undated bill shall be invalid.

Clause 9.

2. That a bill may be made payable to one of two payees in the alternative.

Clause 14.

3. That where the acceptance of a bill payable after sight is undated, the holder may treat it as if it were dated or of the same date as the bill.

Clause 16.

4. That days of grace should be abolished, and that whenever a bill falls due on a non-business day it shall be payable on the next business day.

Clause 17

5. That when a bill names a case of need, it should be optional with the holder to resort to him; but that if he does not

resort to the case of need he shall not be able to recover interest or expenses, but only the amount of the bill. Clause 22.

6. That the provision of Section 22 as to inchoate instruments be omitted.

Clause 28.

7. That a person who signs the name of another to a bill without authority shall be personally liable thereon as if he had signed his own name.

Clause 29.

9. That where a person who signs a bill describes himself an agent or as acting in a representative capacity, he shall not be personally liable thereon unless in signing he acted without authority.

Clause 47.

"That the drawer of a bill of exchange shall not be discharged by the holder's omission to present it. for payment on the day of its maturity unless the drawer has suffered actual damage through the delay."

Clause 53.

10. That when a foreign bill payable after date is dishonoured by non-acceptance, it shall be optional with the holder to protest it or not.

Clause 69.

11. That a bill or note shall not be discharged when the holder makes the acceptor or maker of it his executor.

Clause 72.

12. That a bill shall not be invalidated by an alteration made without the holder's consent.

Clause 86.

13. That a cheque may be crossed not only by adding the words" and Co.," but also by adding the word “Bank” or its equivalent.

14. That where a cheque is crossed generally the collecting banker may cross it specially to himself.

Clause 87.

15. That where a cheque crossed specially is forwarded by the banker named by his agent for collection, the agent bank may cross its own name on it if the forwarding bank has omitted to do so.

Clause 101.

16. That all signatures to a bill must be in the handwriting of the party signing, and that a lithographed or stamped signature shall be insufficient.